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Archive for the ‘12X12 challenge’ Category

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Let’s Celebrate!

Monday, December 5th, 2011

I was going to write a deep thought blog post about how I feel that after a year of wallowing, I feel as if a fog is lifting from my life. Then, I noticed that my last post was number 1500. That number was mind boggling to me.

To celebrate, I will give the 12 x 12 quilt up there to someone who leaves me a comment. It is one of the four quilts that I did for the eggplant challenge. They were subtitled, a la Albers. This photo is not a good representation of the true colors which are very rich. It is silk and quilted with silk thread.

I am happy to say that I am feeling lighter and happier and more in control of my life. I can’t say that there is anything specific and it has probably been gradual. I hope that I can now begin to do work again that satisfies me and is worthy of my time and energy. This year has been a struggle for me. Thank goodness for the Twelve by Twelve challenges. They have kept me moving along and given me a sense of accomplishment when needed. And certainly, the Houston experience was a huge boost to our whole group.

I have been quilting Gwen’s sunshine quilt. Here it is sandwiched and ready to go.

I haven’t done much preparation for Christmas. We went out to the nursery yesterday and bought this pretty wreath made from rose hips.

I think we will get a tree at the end of this week. We are hosting a party for one of the priests from Trinity. She is retiring this month. Steve is on the commission that worked with her, and so they are having a special retirement party for her. It will be an incentive to get the house looking Christmassy. (Is that a word?)

I hope you will leave me a comment. I will do the drawing on Wednesday.

Posted in 12X12 challenge, Holidays, My creations | 23 Comments »

A Fused Glass Quilt

Friday, November 11th, 2011

When the nine Twelves met in Houston, we exchanged some lovely gifts. It was so wonderful to bring them home with me to fondle and enjoy. Karen‘s husband, Ted, made each of us a fused glass plate which was inspired by one of our Twelve by Twelve quilts. Since they are very heavy, they were delivered or shipped to each of us. Karen brought mine to me a while ago when she was visiting Portland.

It was inspired by my mathematics themed quilt — Not  So Simple Geometry.

I keep mine in my dining room and you can see how beautifully it goes with the wall color. It is a lovely memory of the Twelve community. Thank you Ted and Karen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Posted in 12X12 challenge, Quilting Friends | 3 Comments »

More About IQF Houston

Tuesday, November 8th, 2011

I love urban architecture and Houston has many modern buildings. It seems as if the whole city is brand new in the area of the convention center.

This is a shot at night. We were not that far from our hotel so we often walked back and forth to the convention center.

These trees with blue lights captured my interest. As did the red umbrellas hanging in the Pavilion where we ate dinner one night.

 

This photo was taken from the outside deck on the second floor of the convention center.

I took some photos in the quilt show for friends who couldn’t be there, but I didn’t take photos of other quilts to show. One of my favorite pieces in the show was the little fiber village by quilt artists that Kathy York organized.

Terry Grant and I spent some time trying to match up the houses with the artists that we know. We were very successful except for the one’s whose work we were not familiar with.

I did not do much shopping. i just don’t need more stuff!! This is what I bought:

A little bag of gorgeous scraps from Shibori Girl. I was so happy to meet another online friend.

Some gorgeous hand-dyed thread my Artfabrik. It was great to see Laura Wasilowski again and meet Frieda Anderson.

I needed some more dotty circle fabric for Gwen’s quilt and I picked up these two — perfect!!

Here is one last shot of some of the twelves waiting for our table for dinner on Saturday night.

i am still enjoying the wonderful memories of being with these great women. The Houston experience has given me so much joy and energy to jump into art making. Life is good.

 

 

Posted in 12X12 challenge, IQF, Quilting Friends, Stuff I Buy | 1 Comment »

Where to Start?

Monday, November 7th, 2011

I am still basking in the glow of our Houston adventure. Our exhibit was so lovingly received. We heard comment after comment about how unusual, how creative and how inspirational it was. We had our photos take and we signed books. We listened and we told our story over and over and we never got tired of sharing. You can see more photos of the installation on my Flickr set.

This photo shows how the quilts were displayed with lots of breathing room around each mosaic. Each set of quilts had an easel with the names of the quilts and the artist statements. Each signage also stated the title of the theme and acknowledged our sponsor, Del Thomas, The Thomas Contemporary Quilt Collection. Without Del, we would not have been able to have this exhibit.

The Colorplay series was displayed around the outside perimeter of our area and the original theme series was displayed on the inside where we had tables and sold our books and signed the books. We also had postcards of the Colorplay series for sale. We sold our of books and postcards. The biggest book vendor at the show, Cathy Neri, brought lots of books and she sold out, also.

Every day at 6:30, we all gathered at the tables and signed books. There was usually several people waiting for us.

It was the first time that nine of the twelves were together, and it was as if we had been spending time together for a long time. Well, we had, but it was on line!!

We went out for a delicious Tex Mex dinner at Ninfa’s, a Houston landmark. I enjoyed a delicious Margarita with sangria swirled into it.

Here we are, except for Kristin, who took the photo.

I brought the missing 3 with me so that they could be in photos.

We went back to the hotel and sat around and talked and exchanged gifts. I can’t show you those until the other 3 get their’s. All I can say is it was very special.

Houston IQF is every quilt show I have ever attended on steroids. The quilt section is gorgeous. Everything is hung thoughtfully. I did not get around to see all of the quilts. I worked at the SAQA table on Saturday morning which was lots of fun. The vendor mall was huge and crowded and intimidating. I did not do much shopping.

I was exhausted when I arrived home last night, but slept really well. I have had a lot of SDA work to catch up on and I also got laundry done, stocked up on food and sewed a sleeve on a quilt that is going to Chandler, AZ tomorrow for a show.

I will post more about Houston, tomorrow.

 

Posted in 12X12 challenge, IQF, Quilting Friends | 5 Comments »

In a Blue Mood

Monday, October 31st, 2011

 

 

…but in a good way! I finally got a batch of indigo mixed up today. I have been meaning to do it for ages. My new motto is “just do it.” I dyed a couple of items of clothing that were stained and looking drab.

I also dyed the cotton scarves that I worked on the other day. Some of my experiments came out quite well. I think some of them will go back in the pot tomorrow for a boost of color.

This morning, I had my final eye doctor check up. I have a prescription for reading glasses. I get two free pairs with the cataract surgeries. I ordered one pair today and will wait to see whether I want another pair of bifocals or just glasses for close up work.

I also went shopping for a few things for the trip to Houston — some comfy shoes and a new purse. I am getting so excited. I keep getting reports from friends who are there for Market and they say our exhibit is “freaking awesome.” Just 3 more sleeps!!

 

Posted in 12X12 challenge, Dyeing, indigo, IQF | 6 Comments »

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